Indie pop
The term "indie" had been used for some time to describe artists on independent labels, but the key moment in the naming of "indie pop" as a genre was the release of NME's C86 tape in 1986. The compilation featured, among other artists, Primal Scream, The Pastels, and The Wedding Present, and "indie" quickly became shorthand for a genre whose defining conventions were identified as jangling guitars, a love of '60s pop, and melodic power pop song structures (the genre was initially dubbed "C86" after the tape itself).In the mid to late '80s, indie pop was criticized for its associations with so-called "shambling" and underachievement, but the C86 indie pop scene is now recognized as a pivotal moment for independent music in the UK, as is recognized in the subtitle of that compilation's 2006 extended reissue: CD86: 48 Tracks from the Birth of Indie Pop. Indie pop continues to have a strong following and inspire musicians, not just in the UK but around the world, with new bands, labels and clubs devoted to the sound.
The birth of indie pop can be traced back to the post-punk explosion in limited-circulation photocopied fanzines, and small shop-based record labels such as London's Rough Trade Records and Glasgow's Postcard Records. The publication in Record Business magazine of the 1st weekly indie singles and album charts and the adoption of such charts in the UK music press stimulated activity. In order to reflect this, the British musical weekly New Musical Express released an era-defining compilation cassette called C81. This cassette featured a wide range of groups, reflecting the different approaches of the immediate post-punk era.
NME followed up C81 with C86. Similarly designed to reflect the new music scene of the time in the UK, it is now seen as the birth of indie pop in the UK. The UK music press was, in 1986, highly competitive, with four weekly papers documenting new bands and trends. The grouping of bands, often artificially, with an overarching label to heighten interest or sell copies, was commonplace. NME journalists of the period now agree that C86 was an example of this, but also a by-product of NME's "hip hop wars", a schism in the paper (and among readers) between enthusiasts of contemporary progressive black music (for example, by Public Enemy and Mantronix), and fans of guitar-based music, as represented on C86. C86 featured key early bands of the genre such as Primal Scream and The Pastels, but also included tracks by several more abrasive, "shambling" bands from the Ron Johnson label, who were atypical of the perceived C86 jangle pop aesthetic.
Of course the "scene", like any scene, barely existed. Like squabbling Marxist factions, groups who had much in common built up petty rivalries. The June Brides and the Jasmine Minks were the biggest names at Alan McGee's Living Room Club and couldn't stand the sight of each other. Only when the The Jesus and Mary Chain exploded and stole their two-headed crown did they realise they were basically soulmates.
Many of the actual C86 bands distanced themselves from the scene cultivated around them by the UK music press - in its time, C86 became a pejorative term for its associations with so-called "shambling" and underachievement.
In 2004 the UK-focused Rough Trade Shops compilation Indiepop Vol. 1 effectively documented the history of the sound acknowledging that it pre- and post-dated 1986.
In his book Time Travel, pop historian Jon Savage traced the musical origins of C86 and indie pop to the Velvet Underground's eponymous 3rd album. Power pop was a significant influence, as was punk and post-punk. Catchy power pop melodies made the Ramones and the Buzzcocks the most identifiable punk influences. Before the last and main influence on C86 and indie pop - The Smiths - the bands of Glasgow's post-punk independent Postcard label had some influence: Josef K and Orange Juice. The Jesus and Mary Chain's sound combined the Velvet Underground's "melancholy noise" with Beach Boys pop melodies and Phil Spector's "Wall of Sound" production,while New Order emerged from the demise of post-punk band Joy Division and experimented with synth pop, techno and, later, house music. The Jesus and Mary Chain, along with Dinosaur Jr, and the dream pop of Cocteau Twins, were the formative influences for the shoegaze movement of the late 1980s. Named for the band members' tendency to stare at their feet and guitar effects pedals onstage rather than interact with the audience, acts like My Bloody Valentine, and later Slowdive and Ride created a loud "wash of sound" that obscured vocals and melodies with long, droning riffs, distortion, and feedback. The other major movement at the end of the 1980s was the drug-fuelled Madchester scene. Based around The Haxienda, a nightclub in Manchester owned by New Order and Factory Records, Madchester bands such as Happy Mondays and The Stone Roses mixed acid house dance rhythms, Northern soul and funk with melodic guitar pop.
The jangle pop indie sensibility with which C86 became synonymous began to be applied to bands who had not appeared on the tape. Some influenced by the compilation and later associated with it had yet to emerge in 1986, such as Talulah Gosh and Razorcuts. The UK label Sarah Records, which released its 1st record in 1987, embraced the perceived jangly indie pop sensibility in such a way that it - and its most popular bands, The Field Mice and Heavenly - could be seen as typical proponents.
The movement continued to hold sway into the 1990s. Scenes developed in the United States, particularly around labels such as K Records and Slumberland Records. Bands of the US riot grrrl movement acknowledged a debt to C86, and Scottish band Belle and Sebastian recognized its influence.
In the United States, the terms "twee", "twee pop" and "cutie" have been adopted retrospectively to describe some examples of indie pop, owing to what has been called the genre's "revolt into childhood".
In the mid-2000s, British clubs such as How Does it Feel to be Loved?, Scared To Dance and Moogie Wonderland continue to air tracks from C86, and Sweden has increased its export of indie pop through Labrador Records.
Related Sites for Indie pop
- Indie pop music - Listen free at Last.fm read Indie pop
- Indie Pop | Significant Albums, Artists and Songs | AllMusic read Indie pop
- Soma FM Indie Pop Rocks read Indie pop
- NO UGLY THANX :) [Only handsome pop, indie, electro, house] group ... read Indie pop
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